6A
by jayer
Summary: Law school's finally coming to an end and Matt Murdock makes his first steps towards being an adult. Post Into the Ring.
1. Chapter 1

"Afternoon, Nelson."

Foggy glanced over from the cup of coffee he was pouring. "Afternoon, Stahl."

"How's the research for Butler going?"

"Fascinating, How's Turner?"

"Thrill a minute."

Foggy took the opportunity to sneak a glance as Marci Stahl reached up to retrieve her stash of tea bags from the cabinet. A careful glance given that such an action would fall quite foul of the state's sexual harassment laws, something a law school graduate should be very familiar with.

"How's your bar reviewing going?" Foggy asked half into his coffee to avoid looking directly at his fellow intern. He was just grateful that Matt had stayed in the library. The last thing Foggy needed was a lecture from Matt on how he needed to just get over it and ask Marci out.

"Slow, mind numbing. You?"

"Same." Foggy sighed. He reached for the cups of coffee. "Better get back to Mr Butler."

"Later."

Foggy elbowed the library door open. He was surprised to find Matt wasn't at the table where they had been working. He set the cups on the table and went looking for Matt.

Foggy could hear a voice coming from several shelves over.

"Could we make it 6? I can't off work until 5." Foggy turned the corner to find his friend on the phone.

"Thanks." Matt said into his phone. "I know the area."

Foggy's curiosity was piqued. It sounded like Matt had a date but he hadn't mentioned anyone recently.

"Hey. I got us coffee."

"Great. Thanks." Matt followed Foggy back to the table.

"Figured you'd be enrapt in your playback." Foggy settled back in front of his stack of papers.

"Needed to stretch my legs." Matt reached for his headphones.

"Who was on the phone?"

"The phone?"

"I could hear you talking when I walked in."

"Oh, yeah. I'm meeting someone after work."

"Someone? A lady someone? Is there something you haven't told me?"

"it's nothing."

"Nothing. Come on, Matt, who is it? Is it that cute red head from coffee shop? She's been checking you out."

"No."

"It isn't a blind date is it? No pun intended."

"No. It's not a date. It's a business thing."

"Business thing? What kind of business are you into? You aren't freelancing as a hit man are you?"

"Ha ha."

"So?"

"So we have work to finish. I need to get out on time."

"What aren't you telling me?"

"Nothing, Foggy. Can we get back to work?"

"I don't believe you."

"It's nothing."

"Its a job interview, isn't it? You got a job interview and you don't want to tell me about it. Why? You think I'm jealous you already got an interview and we haven't even taken the bar. I'm not, I'm thrilled."

"No, you're not. I know you, Foggy. You can't hide your sarcasm from me."

Foggy grunted.

"Fine." Matt sighed. "I'm going to check out an apartment."

"That's the big secret? You got a line on an — oh, wait. It's an apartment just for you. That's why you didn't want to tell me."

"Look, Foggy"

"Yesterday at lunch you were wishy washy when I mentioned looking for a place cause you already had plans to find your own. Why didn't you just tell me?"

"Because I'm an asshole."

Foggy laughed. "Matthew Michael Murdock you are a lot things. You're disgustingly attractive, grossly fit, annoyingly smart and obnoxiously charming. But you are not, and as your best friend I'm the most qualified to judge this, an asshole."

"Except this time I am. I'm a two faced asshole. I've been looking a couple of months and I didn't tell you because you were going to be my backup plan."

"What? If I found something for us before you found something you were just going to stop looking."

"Pretty much."

"Why did you want to look for your own place at all?"

"Because I've never been on my own. First it was me and my dad, then it was foster care and the group home. After that I was in the dorms. Someone else has always figured out where I was going to live and eat, I just wanted to know I could figure it out on my own if I had to."

"That doesn't make you an asshole. Not telling me maybe makes you a jerk."

"I can accept that. I'm really sorry. Seriously."

"Apology accepted. Just don't it again. And I'm going with you."

"Foggy."

"It's not because I don't think you can do it without help. I know you can. But if this place works out then I have find my own place and if I end up with a Ass Wipe"

"You'll be hanging at my place and you want to be sure it meets with your highly sophisticated standards."

"Exactly."

"Then we better get busy because we aren't leaving until Perkins gets his research."


	2. Chapter 2

"6A. Door's open." Foggy paused.

"What?"

"Nervous?"

"No. It's an apartment, not a date."

"Probably a crappy apartment considering the price."

"Probably."

"Well, you wanted to be an adult. Adult thing to do is plaster a fake smile on your faces, be polite and give it a once over."

'Suppose."

"Hey wanna check out Asian place we passed on the corner. Seeing as we'll have totally missed dinner by the time we get back to the dorm."

"Why not?" Matt said as he stepped through the door way.

"Okay then." Foggy laughed. "After you."

Foggy followed as Matt walked down the short hallway, his cane sliding along the wall to its edge.

"Wow." Foggy gasped as they reached the end of the hallway and he got his first look at the apartment.

"That bad, huh?" Matt whispered over his shoulder.

"That good."

"Good?"

"This place is huge."

"How huge?"

"It's at least as big as the whole suite."

"Ah, Mr Murdock I presume." An older woman, perhaps early 40s, approached them. "Catherine Shaw."

"Oh yes. Mrs Shaw. Thank you for letting me come so late."

Foggy refrained from snickering. Even after three years he was still amused by folks doing a double take that the blind guy doesn't see them sticking out a hand for a shake.

"And you are?" The woman turned to look at him.

"Franklin Nelson."

"He's a friend."

"Right. Of course. Well. Okay then." Foggy held back another snicker when he saw the woman's face go into 'realtor mode'.

"The building was originally built in the 1960s as a commercial space. Retail and offices. Thus the more industrial appearance with the exposed brick and hardwood floors. This particular space, with the natural light from the oversized windows, was a photography studio at one point."

Foggy leaned against the wall and let Matt wander, watching his friend explore the space with his free hand.

"The building was rezoned in the 80s to allow for the top 3 floors to be converted into living spaces. The second and third floors were at the time on long time lease. When it ran out in '95 those floors were also converted. But in 2000 another rezoning classed the building as live/work so several of the tenants are artists who work out of their homes. During the last renovations a year ago, the spaces were even wired for fiber internet, for when the city finalizes a contract for service."

"What's this?' Matt's hand brushed over the wall between the main area and the bedroom.

"It's a sliding panel door. Should you want to close off the bedroom during a get together or such. The bathroom is there at the corner. Otherwise it's essentially an open floor plan. It's really quite a wonderful space for a young couple to set up their first home."

"Oh, we aren't a couple." Foggy interjected.

"Fog, Mr Nelson, is just here to offer his opinion. Since I'm utterly unqualified to judge decor and such."

"He's got awful taste."

"Of course, my apologizes for the assumption."

"Please don't worry about it." Matt smiled warmly.

"We don't."

"So, it's only Mr Murdock who would be living here?"

"Correct."

"Well what else can I tell?" Foggy's eyebrow raised as it seemed like the woman's demeanor because much more energetic at this news. It was very curious. "About the apartment, or the building, or the neighborhood?"

"Actually could I just have a few minutes to walk and get a feel for the space?"

"Of course. Actually if you don't mind, I'd like to call home and check in the babysitter. Just make sure my kids are being total holy terrors."

"Please. Go ahead."

"Okay, well I'll just be in the hallway and out of your way. Give a shout of you think of any questions."

"Sure."

Matt traced the wall to the hallway, letting his hand guide him back into the kitchen. "Refrigerator. Cabinet." Matt carefully made his way around the area. He stopped at the far end. "Does this window open?"

Foggy walked over. "Yeah. Right hand side."

"Fire escape?"

"Yeah."

"Any plugs along the cabinet?"

"Yeah. On the long wall."

"Good." Matt continued his tour. "Stove here. Oven. Sink." He muttered.

"What are you doing?"

"Just checking I've got the floor plan right in my head." Matt ran his hand up the backsplash. "Not wide enough to use for eating."

"Nope."

Matt paused for a moment before tracing the outside of the divider towards the windows. "Either she's very committed to faking it or she's really talking to a babysitter." He whispered.

"What?"

Matt shook his head. "I don't feel any drafts from the window."

"That's good."

"Enough floor space for a small table for eating and a sofa?"

"Sure, couple of chairs perhaps."

"Where's the wiring for power, cable, that kind of thing?"

"There's a power plug over by the kitchen and another here on the wall separating the bedroom. Looks like the cable plug and I guess that's the internet she was talking about."

"Space big enough for a TV?"

"You don't watch TV."

"I might get a girlfriend that does. Be nice to know I have a place to put a TV for her."

"Okay. Yeah, there's enough space I guess. If it's not a huge tv." Foggy lowered his voice. "What's with all the questions?"

Matt rapped his cane against wall, measuring the step up into the bedroom space. "How big of a bed do you think could fit in here?"

Foggy followed him into the room. "A queen, maybe a king. I don't know exactly how big they are."

Matt was checking out the smaller window. "Another fire escape?" He asked as his hand slid over the latch.

"Yeah." Foggy rolled his eyes. "Matt, what's your deal? Why the second look? Why all the questions? This place is great and a steal. Why aren't you jumping on it."

"Because I'm not so sure."

"What?"


	3. Chapter 3

"Honestly, what do you think about Mrs Shaw?"

"I think you should have told her you're blind. You totally knocked her off her game."

"Her game?"

"Folks like this are like actors. They write a script and practice it until it sounds natural, kind of like opening and closing remarks. You walk in all not seeing and she's got to change up her speech on the spot. So all that blabber about the building's history and pre-emptive fiber internet."

"Maybe. Maybe all that stuff about brick walls and wood floors was her vamping until she could think of something that might appeal to the blind guy."

"Or maybe she was trying to appeal to both of us. She did think we're a couple."

"Did you hear how her voice changed when she found out it was just me. She was thrilled."

"She was relieved. She didn't have to keep trying to pitch to two people."

"Maybe. Or maybe she's relieved because the answer to the question we haven't asked yet is something the blind guy won't figure out, at least not right away, but his sighted live in boyfriend probably would."

"You think there's an issue she's not telling us."

"Why else would this place be so cheap? I've been going over apartment listings for two months and places half the size of this cost a good $300-400 more than this place."

"So you think there's an issue Mrs Shaw isn't telling us about. Something I'd see but you wouldn't."

"It's the only explanation I can think of for such a cheap rent."

"We should probably give Mrs Shaw a chance to be honest."

"Agreed." Matt walked away from the window. "Mrs Shaw, I had a question."

"Yes Mr Murdock."

"What's wrong with the apartment?"

"Nothing, Mr Murdock."

"And the building?"

"Nothing."

"I don't believe you."

"Well, I'm sorry Mr Murdock if you don't believe me. But I assure you there is nothing wrong with this apartment or this building. Yes the windows were blown apart during The Big Event, yes several of the floors had to replaced as well as some wiring due to water damage, mostly on the other end of the building. But it has all been fixed and completely within or above code. You have absolutely no reason to be concerned about renting this apartment."

"Then why is the rent so cheap?"

"The rent was set by the co-op."

"And you represent the co-op so I think you know why. "

"The price was set to encourage someone to rent the apartment."

"That sounds like something a lawyer would say. And it doesn't answer my question."

Foggy was caught off guard when Mrs Shaw started laughing.

"Are you sure you're just a law student?"

"Technically I'm not a student. I finished my classwork last month. But the bar isn't until September so I suppose you could say as I'm not a bar certified lawyer I'm still studying."

"Well when you pass the bar, you're going to make one hell of a lawyer. I pity anyone that ends up on the other side of the table.

"I was hoping to avoid bringing this up since you didn't notice it yourself and it's really not an issue in this case."

"Mrs Shaw, I think we both know that it's not your call to decide whether or not to disclose an issue."

"If you really wanna know."

"I do."

"Fine. Mr Nelson, would you kindly take a look out the window."

Foggy walked over to the living room window and glanced out. "What am I looking for?"

"Look up."

Foggy lifted his eyes. "Ah, yes. I see what you mean. Is that as bright as I expect it is?"

"Sure is. Apparently the Zoning Commission was so desperate to get the area redeveloped so folks would forget about how it got destroyed that they didn't pay that much attention to all of the building permit requests."

"What is it?"

"A very large, very bright electronic billboard on a high rise about three blocks over."

"The window in the bedroom is shorter so it cuts off the light but in here it's rather obnoxious."

"Unless you were blind." Matt laughed. "My apologizes Mrs Shaw. It seems you were correct that there are no issues."

"Great, then we should get started on your application. If you want the apartment."

"He wants it. He definitely wants it."

"Excellent. There is a required credit check."

"I don't really have any credit. I have one credit card to my name and I've never used it."

"Do you have any debt? Student loans?"

"No."

"Any savings accounts?"

"One. Inheritance from my father."

"Job."

"Intern associate at Landman and Zack."

"Nice. I don't foresee any issues there. The co-op likes to review all applications. Just happens there's a meeting tomorrow. I'm sure they'll have no concerns with an upstanding young man employed by such a renown firm renting the unit."

"Especially when you yell 'he's blind' like a giddy school girl."

"I wasn't planning to yell but yes it will come up in the conversation. Safe to save my call the morning after will be just a formality and we can set a time for you to come pick up your keys. Would Monday, same time, work for you?"

"I think I can manage that."

Foggy laughed as they left a few minutes later. "Congratulations on your first steps to true adulthood."

"Thanks for coming."

"What are friends for."


End file.
